title: Modified diffusion equation for the wormlike-chain statistics in curvilinear coordinates.
abstract: One of the essential physical quantities used to study the conformation and structure of polymers is the so-called propagator in polymer theories. On the basis of the wormlike-chain statistical-physics model, we derive the partial diffusion equation that the propagator satisfies, for a curvilinear coordinate system. As it turns out, an additional term exists, that couples the rotating local coordinate frame with an orientation differential operator; this term has not been previously documented. In addition, for a wormlike chain moving on a curved surface, the external-field term needs to be supplemented by a surface curvature energy penalty.
authors.affiliation: School of Mathematics and Computational Science, Xiangtan University, Xiangtan, Hunan 411105, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Qin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.forename: Jianfeng
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Pingwen
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Jeff Z Y
authors.initials: JZ
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D004058:Diffusion; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D013499:Surface Properties
chemical_list: D011108:Polymers